Megan Leavey
Summary
The 2017 war movieMegan Leaveytold the genuine affecting story of a soldier ’s chemical bond with her military blackguard , but lead out some key details of the tangible subject ’s actual level in true Hollywood fashion . One of manywar movies based on a real soul , Megan Leaveyfollowed up on the 2011 bookSergeant king : The Unbreakable Bond Between a Marine and His Military Working Dog , which detail the story of Rex ’s former handler , Marine Corporal Mike Dowling . Starting with Megan Leavey ’s entrance into the US Marine Corps , the film chronicled the story of her friendship with Rex .
For the most part , the flick stayed comparatively straight to the real issue as they hap . Megan really did become Rex ’s next handler after Marine Joe Kang , both of them really did get heavily bruise in the railway line of tariff , and Megan really did fight to be able to adopt her beloved former associate thanks to the help of a kindly Senator . However , like manymovies based tangible result , Megan Leaveydidn’t say the whole story , and flat out embellish the truth in certain scenes .
Megan Leavey deliver an emotional punch through its story of a soldier ’s bond paper with her military dog , and other state of war movies echo its root .
10Megan’s Reasons For Joining The Marines Were Different
The film tried to make Leavey’s recruitment more personal
The filmMegan Leaveybegins with the titulary character ’s decision to join the military machine in the first position , specifically the U.S. Marine Corps . In the film , this is painted as a very personal journeying that begin after Megan lose her best friend and her job back - to - back , reeling in grief and deciding to make something grander with her life as a result . What the motion picture does n’t mention is that the real life Megan Leavey ’s decision to connect was far less personal .
Is her parents ' effort to talk her out of her decision .
In reality , after trying college for a abbreviated stint , Megan Leavey determine to fall in the Marine Corps in 2003 . Leavey cited the September 11 terrorist approach , only two years erstwhile at the prison term of her recruitment in 2003 , as the primary impetus behind her conclusion . What the celluloid does accurately present , however , is her parent ' attempt to talk her out of her conclusion , not want their only child to be put in harm ’s fashion with a military modus vivendi .
Custom Image by Yeider Chacon
9How Megan And Rex Met
In reality, Megan and Rex didn’t stumble across one another in a canine meet cute
Soon after join up , Kate Mara’sMegan Leavey has a chance encounter with the bomb - sniffing dog Rex while clean the nasty kennels of the K-9 unit as a penalization . It ’s this initial meeting that leads to Leavey ’s crush with the dog , doing everything in her power to transfer to the K-9 unit and pivot her military career into that of a dog animal trainer in the volatile ordination disposal squad . In realism , this kind of sudden teddy in assigned duty would n’t be so trivial to accomplish , making it unlikely that Megan could remove to the K-9 unit on such a whim .
It ’s not so unproblematic in the U.S. military to request a transfer to a different unit , especially one that involve such a unique set of skills . Furthermore , receiving a penalisation to clean the kennel of a K-9 unit without already being a part of it would be fundamentally impossible to happen on its own . This would make it incredibly unlikely for Leavey to be able to exercise with Rex after running into him by bare happenstance . In the real story of Megan Leavey , the pair only foregather after being assigned to one another .
8How Megan Signed Up For The K-9 Unit
The film stretched the suspension of disbelief for Leavey’s K-9 unit involvement
The film ’s transfer of training of Megan Leavey into the K-9 unit raises a lot of question . It ’s portray as relatively lilliputian for Megan to not only successfully lobby to begin training as a dogtooth coach after already being deployed in another unit , but she ’s even able to quest an designation to one animal in particular . The true circumstances behind Leavey ’s draft into the K-9 unit were far less coincidental .
In real life , Megan Leavey ’s desire to get together a unit working with dogs was impress from the beginning . before long after fine-tune basic training at Parris Island , Leavey apply for the K-9 unit of the military police . From there , the young soldier was working with Rex right after meeting him , being assign to treat the darling hot dog upon her reaching at Camp Pendleton , read stewardship of him over from Marine Joe Kang .
7Rex’s Personality Was Overblown
The real-life Rex was far more of a sweetheart
Megan Leavey and Rex ’s relationshipbegan as a handler - beast twosome in volatile ordinance disposal , take to hone Rex ’s sensitive nose to the chemical signaling of commonly - used improvize explosive devices . In the film , Megan is admonish that Rex is a specially difficult dog to exploit with , having a protracted hip-hop mainsheet of pungency incident to his name . The fact that Leavey is capable to have the best this explosive personality and form a close bond with Rex is meant to be indicative of her skill as an animal manager .
Rex ’s former coach before Megan Leavey , a Marine by the name of Joe Kang .
In realism , Rex was a beauty from the very commencement . Rex ’s former handler before Megan Leavey , a Marine by the name of Joe Kang , spoke out against the film ’s depiction of Rex ’s disposition , admonishing the screenwriters for making Rex look tough ( viaTask and Purpose ) . In world , Kang admits it was probable another especial dog in the same building block named Kevin that Rex ’s crimson tendencies in the film may have been base off of .
Megan Leavey is a biographical war drama based on the true story of a young Marine corporal (played by Kate Mara) whose unique bond with her military combat dog saves many lives during their deployment in Iraq.
6Megan And Rex Don’t Go On To Fight After Being Injured
The true story behind Leavey’s Purple Heart isn’t quite as dramatic
In both the movie and real spirit , Megan Leavey and Rex both become hard offend from an explosion in the line of duty , resulting in the former receiving the coveted Purple Heart palm for her courage in the line of duty . In the pic , this hurt is the outcome of a ferocious firefight , in which an volatile round end up going off dangerously close to the twosome . When fact - checking the circumstances of Leavey and Rex ’s harm , it seems the film may have slimly swash thing out of proportion .
The being of an actual exchange of fire between opposing forces and Leavey ’s team during the sentence of her injury is n’t confirmed . Although Leavey and Rex were indeed spite by the blowup of an improvize explosive gadget , it ’s unlikely that they in reality went on to participate in the ravishment of an enemy position afterward , let alone take mortar fervor in a hectic firefight . While Leavey confirms some small arms fire was indeed exchanged during the incident ( viaTask and Purpose ) , the film does n’t accurately portray the events direct up to her trauma .
5Megan Got More Medals Than Just The Purple Heart
Even if it is the most significant laurel in her collection, Leavey achieved so much more
The Purple Heart is the most pregnant medal earned by anyone inthe cast ofMegan Leavey , countenance alone among Leavey ’s commendations specifically . Awarded only to soldiers who have suffer life sentence - alter injuries in the line of duty , the Purple Heart is a rare badge of honor only those who have made intense sacrifices in the ancestry of duty can attest to have pinned to their uniforms . That being state , the prestigious awarding was far from thorium only decoration Megan Leavey received in existent - life .
Alongside the Purple Heart , Leavey ’s most important medal in actual life is the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal , which make out outstanding achievement and meritable service . Megan ’s medal in particular features the golden " Phoebe " allegory , known as the Combat Distinguishing gadget , which mean that her achievement in receiving the deservingness were done in springy fighting . Other than that , Leavey was also recognized with the Combat Action Ribbon , the Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal , the National Defense Medal , and several ribbon refer the time and place of her service .
4Leavey And Rex Got A Park Dedicated To Them
Megan Leavey was even more well-recognized than the film implies
Megan Leaveyaccurately depicts the overwhelming documentation the former Marine received in lobbying to adopt her former religious service creature . Thanks to the efforts of Senator Chuck Schumer , Leavey ’s petition garner over 20,000 signatures , a arresting turnout of documentation for the larger-than-life soldier ’s requisite to reunify with her pardner in service . But the accompaniment was n’t the only special commendations Leavey and Rex would recieve after being reunited in civilian life .
In Megan Leavey ’s home base body politic of New York , a pawl park was open in 2018 , christen the Clarkstown K-9 Corrals . consecrated to Leavey and Rex , the possibility of this park was a heartwarming display of solidarity for Megan and the tardy Rex . Of course , opening a year after the release of the flick , it ’s graspable that the park was n’t able to get a mention in the final edit .
3The Film Adapted Stories From Other Marines
It seems as though the experiences of other soldiers made it into Leavey’s story
Not only were Megan ’s experience with training the " unmanageable " Rex fabricated , but they seem to be directly taken from the experience of other Marines .
As antecedently mentioned , Rex ’s portrayal in the film was n’t one hundred percent congruent to real - world events , assigning a non - existent difficultness in training to the otherwise well - carry dog . However , not only were Megan ’s experience with training the " difficult " Rex fabricate , but they seem to be straight taken from the experiences of other Marines . In particular , one Jesse L. Maldonado , a former Marine staff sergeant , criticized the moving-picture show for lifting elements of his own story and pasting them intoMegan Leavey(viaTask and Purpose ) .
The obstinate dog Kevin that share a unit with Rex , and was in reality known to have get bite incidents , was assigned to Maldonado . The former K-9 manager claimed that many of the detail of Megan ’s purportedly difficult journeying in training Rex in reality happened to him , with much of the film lining up far more with his own experience than Megan’s . Maldonado also go on to become a primary handler , responsible for for civilise new manager . In the picture , it ’s Megan that claim this role , despite never actually becoming a chief animal trainer in substantial life history .
2Rex Never Hunted The Perpetrators Of The Explosive
The film made Rex pull double-duty as an attack dog and bomb-sniffer
Like all expectant movies centre on dogs , Megan Leaveywas certain to show off the sensitive side of Rex , specially after his eventual retreat and acceptance into Megan Leavey ’s household . However , the picture show made no mistake that Rex was indeed a fighting creature , tail down the culprit of the IED that downs him and his coach . In the film , Rex manage to subdue the terrorist responsible for the turkey , going for the throat in a prominent show of valor and canid viciousness .
In world , there ’s no grounds that Rex or Megan Leavey participated in a heel counter - assault comply their wound . Beyond being simply too damage to be fight effective , actual bomb - sniff dogs and patrol dogs that hunt down and apprehend criminals undergo very different training regimes . It ’s unbelievable that Rex would have ever been expect to , or train to , in person track down down and comprehend the creator or planter of an improvised volatile twist .
1Megan Continued To Work As A Dog Handler
Even if it wasn’t with Rex
WhileMegan Leaveymay end withMegan Leavey and Matt Morales ' relationshipon unsure terms , Leavey maintained a close bond with Rex after take him right up until his dying . That does n’t mean , however , that Megan Leavey never lick with another avail animal , even if it was n’t in the military . Beyond the CRO of the picture , Megan end up proceed her security work with dogs .
After recovering from her injuries and bequeath the Marines with an estimable discharge , Leavey want to continue work in a similar role as her prison term on the K-9 bomb disposal squad . Leavey went on to ferment for a surety troupe , MSA Security , where she worked with a bounder identify Patriot to keep Yankee Stadium safe . Since then , Megan Leaveyhas also worked in similar canine handler persona in the United Nations and as a veterinary technician .
origin : Task and Purpose
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Cast
Megan Leavey is a biographical warfare drama base on the honest chronicle of a young Marine corporal ( played by Kate Mara ) whose unparalleled hamper with her military fighting dog saves many life during their deployment in Iraq .
